Thursday, January 19, 2017

Pileated Woodpecker!

Ed Gaillard: birds &emdash; Pileated Woodpecker, Loxahatchee NWR, Florida
at last!

So went to Florida last weekend, visiting friends in Boynoton Beach and birding, birding, birding. One of the highlights was this handsome Pileated Woodpecker we saw at Loxahatchee NWR. This was a life bird for me, We spotted it by first hearing its slow and extremely authoritative banging on a tree in the Cypress Swamp section of the reserve (which is quite beautiful). I have been in likely Pileated habitat several times in the last few years, but never saw one. A real thrill!

I'll have more to say about the trip later, but for now--the Loxahatchee refuge, the last remaining bit of the northern Everglades, is under threat because the land is owned by the State of Florida, and the Governor would like to sell it to his big contributors in the sugar industry. You can find a list of action items about helping save the reserve at the Friends of Loxahatchee website.

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